Who else hunts with a .410?

[densa44]

I could have put this in hunting but I chose guns and ammo. Now all the seasons are closed even the die-hards will have to take a break. When the dogs started walking on 3 feet and the truck didn't want to go, I quit.

One day not long ago the dogs and I were just getting ready to go in the parking lot at the release site on 19-1, and a fellow walked up who was just leaving and he saw my sxs .410 and he said "oh you are the guy with the .410"

I'd never met the man before. A week or two later pretty much the same thing happened at Buffalo lake.

I used to shoot a 20 ga but found that it was too much gun for a pointed bird.

I reload so that the outrageous price of .410 ammo is not an issue. The gun is lighter than any of the others that I own and the shells hardly weigh anything. So far I'm not missing any birds. BTW I don't consider myself a great shot. I get about 22, 23 in a round of trap at the 16 yard line.

The best advice I ever got was to "get your feet under you first" and that has made a huge difference to my success.

I was wondering how many of us are there out there?

Next year I'll have 5 dogs oh dear. I may need some one else to shoot.

[oldgutpile]

I have been known to pack a pea shooter like that on occasion, but I find a bit of an edge with the 28 ga guns. The 410 is definitely easier on birds, but when it comes to the wild stock ( sharptails more so than pheasant) I like the 28, and even move up to the 20 once they have been educated a bit more towards the end of the season.
Quite often, when we are working a new dog with planted birds, the 410 is the way to go.

[fps plus]

I used to hunt with a Winchester model 42 410 ga but gave it up as my success rate dropped dramatically . I found was there was not enough shot in the pattern to make clean kills . I had been using a 20 gauge Browning Grade V and switched to the 410 . I was getting frustrated one day(as it had for a year) on my lack of success and finally my Golden flushed some partridge on a side hill , as I shot I could see my pattern hitting around the birds in the soft summer fallow field in the background and they were able to pass thru the pattern . I really was not missing ,there was not enough density in the pattern .I went back to the 20 ga and my success went back up. I loved the little 410 but it did not work for me .

[elkhunter11]

My regular pheasant hunting partner, AO member arrowdog, also shoots a 410 SxS, and with my dog getting us close, he does really well with it. Between his 410, and my 28 gauge SxS, it's rare that a bird escapes if we shoot. When hunting with a less proficient shooter, I often carry my 16 gauge SxS , which is much more effective past 35 to 40 yards than my 28 gauge, when I am shooting back up. Although I often shoot skeet with a 410, I much prefer the 28 gauge for hunting.

[Big Thumper]

I pot shot a lot with a single. Used have a Yildiz single but now went to the huglu. Nicest single I've seen. Also, have a 410 SxS I use when the grouse are flushing at closer ranges.

[catnthehat]

I have my grandfather's Stevens 410 that I used to use quite regularly but haven't for a long time - simply because my tastes changed many years ago .
Cat

[Trochu]

Originally Posted by densa44

"oh you are the guy with the .410"

Its clearly just you, you're "the guy".

[densa44]

My friend of 40 years shoots a very nice one and so does Elk. I've never seen Elk miss and range is irrelevant.

[wwbirds]

Over a young dog but like elk my main upland gun is a 28 gauge

[sns2]

Bunch of braggarts on this thread. You guys forget about the mighty 12 gauge or something. LOL.

[angery jonn]

http://www.chuckhawks.com/410_what_good.htm

Interesting read.

[58thecat]

Originally Posted by catnthehat

I have my grandfather's Stevens 410 that I used to use quite regularly but haven't for a long time - simply because my tastes changed many years ago .
Cat

Yup we got a 410 passed on down and I tell ya I remember my dad shooting tons of grouse with it...right gun in the right hands is a deadly combination and fills the freezer.

[densa44]

The story I've been told on the origin of the .410 is that at the end of the US Civil war the government had a pile of muskets that they wanted to sell and they "turned them into shot guns" they were a .410 caliber.

I think the gun gets a bad rap from these old articles, when loaded with plastic wads that hold the shot together I get very good patterns out of my gun. The ammo is too expensive but they are easy to reload, and I don't shoot many shells.

I had a .410 Yildiz single shot which I liked a lot, it doesn't have an exposed hammer and it was cheap less than $200. at wss when I bought it. The sxs was a generous gift from a friend.

If I were buying new I think that the 28 ga. is ideal. But the .410 will see me out and I haven't missed yet and there is still a bird left for the dogs to retrieve.

Thanks for the responses.

[angery jonn]

I think that's a fairly recent article and plastic wads have been around longer then I've been alive.

Did I read that correctly, you've never missed? That's pretty impressive, I wish I could claim the same.

[elkhunter11]

One of the biggest reasons that the 410 gets a bad rap, is that it is often the first shotgun that a youth or new hunter is given to start wingshooting. The combination of an unskilled shooter, and about half of the shot of a 12 gauge, usually results in misses or in crippled birds. Those of us that shoot skeet with the 410 are well aware of how much more difficult it is to break targets with the 410, and the clays are easier to break than a bird is to kill cleanly. The 28 gauge looks very similar to the 410, but the 28 gauge uses about 50% more shot, which makes it much more effective. The 28 gauge is a far better choice for new shooters, and for experienced shooters as well, but the availability of 28 gauge guns and ammunition is far more limited, so the 28 gauge isn't nearly as common. The 410 can be effective on birds, but I wouldn't use it past 25 yards myself, so I will continue to limit my 410 shooting to skeet.

[MK2750]

And after realizing the 28 is much more effective and humane, the next logical step would be why not the 20.

It patterns 7/8 or 1 ounce loads as well as the 28, is available in most any brand, is every bit as light and fast handling and shells are cheap and plentiful.

Add in the ability to shoot heavier loads in 3 inch (even steel shot if needed) and you have basically have came full circle to the common sense conclusion of the masses.

My first shotgun was a Sears and Roebuck bolt action 410. I learned to hunt with that gun and never had a problem taking lots of grouse and Snow Shoe Hare. I also owned an absolutely beautiful 28 and it too proved effective within its limitations. I found nothing magically about either and in fact they were more of a pain and limiting than anything else. Like mentioned above, they are a great tool to start a young dog but beyond that they are just a bit of nostalgia.

[elkhunter11]

While many 410 and 28 gauge shotguns are built on 20 gauge frames, some are built on scaled frames, which are smaller and lighter than comparable 20 gauge guns. As far as the 3" 20 gauge s concerned, the patterns often suffer, and recoil is often more than with a 12 gauge with 2-3/4" loads, because the 20 gauge is lighter. For that reason I still use a 12 gauge semi auto for waterfowl hunting. It provided the cheapest steel factory loads, with a large shot charge and the weight of the gun isn't an issue, like it is when carrying a shotgun for hours hunting upland birds. As far as hunting loads go, I purchase my 28 gauge loads by the flat, so I never run out, and I have plenty of time to source my next order. As well, the hunting loads that I use, cost no more than the same load in 20 gauge. The biggest handicap with the 410 or with the 28 gauge is that target loads are expensive, so I load both. When loading the 410 and 28 gauge, they are cheaper to load than the 20 or 12 gauge, because less shot is used, and the other components cost the same. For the average person, that simply wants a mid gauge hunting or target gun, and that doesn't reload, and that buys their hunting loads one or two boxes at a time, the 20 gauge is the most practical choice by far.

[pgavey]

I have a Rossi rio grand 410 lever I use for grouse. Awesome little gun. For prairie hunting I am back to my Beretta 303 12 g. Phil.

[whitetail Junkie]

Single shot Yildez for the Ruffed grouse....

[partsman]

Here in B C I use it for grouse.

[lund17]

My dad has used a single shot 410 for grouse his entire life, therefore that is what I was taught to use when I was growing up. After I left home, and for a couple of seasons I did go to a 20 for grouse but found out really quickly that I was damaging the breast meat, so I went back to the single shot 410. Since than I have upgraded to a Mossberg pump 410 and just recently picked up a Stevens bolt action 410. My sons have been coming with me for years for grouse and just started to hunt last year so I have taught them how to use a 410 for grouse. They have used 12 & 20ga guns and use them for skeet but they love the 410 guns when it comes to hunting. Added bonus for my sons is they use it for squirrels and rabbits if they get a chance when we are out.

[TUFFBUFF]

I started out with dads 870 wingmaster shooting grouse, along with marlin 39a and 22 shorts.
The 870 is a beautiful shotgun, I did get myself a 870 lw in 28ga a bit ago and its a beauty. I carried it for pheasant once and shot some clays once, it's a bit more forgiving than the 410.
The kids have a snake tamer ss 410 that they ground swat chickens with, he shot a few clays too but didn't hit to many but he's only 7. Blew a bunch of feathers off a pheasant with #6's 3in and was disappointed that it flew away.

I do like the 410 but it has limitations for sure, the 28 is sweet and looking to shooting it more.

[kw12]

I got a nice little double barrel .410 that I picked up off an old guy 10 years ago. It’s an awesome little gun one I’ll never get rid of. He said his father picked it up brand new when he was a teen

[bat119]

Received a folding Elfaisen double when I was 10 or so knocked down a pile of grouse and rabbits with it. I passed it down the grand kids they are using it now, never was a quality piece but it still gets the job done.

[Attilathecanuk]

I have a sxs IGA 410 for grouse and really like it.

[covey ridge]

I used to use a 410 for training my gsp pups. I was able to make very effective kills on even large roosters. This was not because I was an exceptional shot but because I planted the bird I knew exactly where the bird was before the flush. For hunting I preferred the BIG TWENTY

[calgarychef]

Way back when..... I met a fellow in the bush who was a moose hunting fanatic. He was from the east coast so I guess they used to do things a bit different years ago.. He swore up and down that a .410 with a slug was great moose medicine. I don't doubt it for a second.

[Jamie]

1 have a fold in 1/2 410... I love it for camping and quaking
Kills grouse...

[bat119]

Originally Posted by calgarychef

Way back when..... I met a fellow in the bush who was a moose hunting fanatic. He was from the east coast so I guess they used to do things a bit different years ago.. He swore up and down that a .410 with a slug was great moose medicine. I don't doubt it for a second.

There's an old aying
"if you shoot a bear with a .410 double save one barrel for yourself"

[Masterchief]

I've got an old savage 410 / 22... great grouse gun. The 410 ammo is a bit expensive, but I don't mind. I think a sxs 410 would be really nice